The Seven Plauges of Coatsville
by Merideth Gentry
Summary: Umbrella isn't the only company messing with the T virus. Umbrella does not like competition. What happens when innocents get caught in the middle of the evil companies battle for domination.
1. prolouge

Resident Evil: The Seven Plagues of Coatesville  
  
In September of 1998, Raccoon city, a small Midwestern town collapsed under the deadliest viral outbreak in recorded history. In one short night, thousands of people lost their lives, as the once great city became a necropolis. A city where the dead walked the streets and the gutters flowed with blood. The Umbrella Corporation, the world's leading pharmaceutical company planned every aspect of the fall of raccoon city from the initial outbreak of the virus and the extermination squads sent into capture or kill any who might have survived. No one was strong enough to stand against the company's seemingly limitless power. But umbrella is not without its enemies. Rival corporations work tirelessly to create their own deadlier variations of the t-virus. Each company seeking one thing, complete control over all the world's governments and people. Now, in a remote farming community in Pennsylvania, the seeds of a greater disaster begin to blossom. As a madman with nothing to lose nears the realization of his dream of complete global ethnic cleansing, two young boys become all that stands between the power hungry companies and the deaths of eighty percent of the world's population, this is their story. 


	2. Nightmare on the open road

Prologue: Nightmare on the open road  
  
More than anything else in the world, Malleh Hurr feared the night most. Ever since he was a child his anxiety grew as the light outside grew dimmer. Something unexplainable buried deep in his most primitive mind knew that once the sun went down the world was no longer a safe place. Tonight however was no ordinary night. He was stuck in the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania trying to find any place to pull over and stop no matter how primitive, just as long as it got him and his family off the open road. He had been driving non-stop all day. He was on his was to his mother in law's funeral, an ordeal to be survived and forgotten as soon as possible. He hated the foul-mouthed woman. No matter what he did or how nicely he had treated her, she never smiled at him or his children even once. She hardly ever smiled at her own daughter either. If in the autopsy they had found no heart in her Malleh would not have been surprised. He glanced over at his sleeping wife and children. Seeing them so peaceful calmed his anxieties. He could have avoided this he knew, but he loved his wife. He would never leaver her to face her family on her own. His brooding was disrupted by a sharp stab of pain in his stomach blurring of his vision. He had been feeling nauseous ever since the family had stopped for dinner at the roadside diner in Coatesville. He remembered the dump; everything was dirty and sickly looking. Even the waitress didn't look healthy. She coughed all through their meal. Drinking water like she was about to dry up and vanish. He shook his head to clear the memory. Why anyone would want to live in such a god-forsaken area was beyond him. The sooner this trip was over the better. He realized he was sweating heavily. His throat was so dry it felt like it could bleed. How could he be so thirsty after drinking so much water only a few hours earlier? It didn't matter; he would pull over by the side of the road, throw up and continue on hopefully not waking any of his family. No sense in worrying them over nothing. Before he could pull over, he caught sight of something in the middle of the road. It looked like a cow. It was the last thing he saw before losing consciousness as he swerved at the last moment hitting the backside of the cow, the car rolling over into a ditch landing on it's top. When Malleh finally came to, he was lying in the middle of the road. Somehow he was unhurt, but his family. After getting his bearings he looking into the car window trying to make out if his family was alive or not. He fell against the bottom of the car weeping in frustration and fear when a disturbing sound cut through his misery. It sounded like a cross between an injured cow's bleat and the growl of a wolf. Startled he stumbled over to the cow that surely had to be dead. To his partial relief it was only injured, at least one life could be saved. But something was wrong, he looked closer, the cow lunged at him trying to bite him. Malleh couldn't believe what he had just seen, cows don't bit humans, not even injured ones. Before he could ponder the thought any more, a high pitched buzzing sound shrieked in his ears as several dark forms the size of large dogs flew at him from the darkness smothering him in a cocoon of unimaginable pain. 


	3. The night visitor

Chapter 1: The night visitor  
  
Lucas was having the dream again. He was at his family's farm. A small calf knelt at his feet while a faceless man stood behind him like a mountain blocking any hope of retreat. The man placed an ugly looking axe in Lucas' hands, in the agonizingly slow way that could only happen in a nightmare, as if the axe were moving through water. "You know what you have to do" the shadowy figure said flatly, his voice distorted as if coming from a million miles away. "This is the way you survive, off the deaths of others, show me you have what it takes to survive, show me now". Lucas tried to choke out a protest, but his voice carried no sound. He shut his eyes tightly and tried to scream but nothing came out. When he opened his eyes, he saw the calf was no longer a calf but a child, looking up at him wordlessly pleading for his life. Lucas raised the ax as he did every time the dream came and swung as hard as he could at the child, wanting nothing more than to make it go away. The axe never touched the child. As always this was when the dream ended. He was home in his bed, safe. He turned to his side to check the time, 1:30 in the morning, the worst time of night. He pulled himself out of bed, knowing any attempts at sleep were futile. On the nights the dream came, all he could do was sit and wait for the sun to come up. At least there was no school the next day so he could afford to be tired. Today on his way out of school a fanatical animal right's activist assaulted him. The crazed woman threw a bucket of red paint at him and his brother. The woman screamed something about how his father was abusing the cows on his dairy farm. Holding them in captivity his only concern being how much milk they produced, milk that rightfully belonged to their calves. She compared him and his family to vampires. He knew the woman and her followers were irrational, but part of him still wondered every time he looked over the fields of his father's dairy ranch. This was not the first time the woman or one of her followers had threatened him. She was part of The New Inquisition, a fanatical Christian church that seemed to have some new crusade every year. This year it was protecting animals, last year it had been protecting children, the irony did not escape him. As he settled into a pile of sheets in the corner of his bedroom where he waits for morning every time the dream comes am unnatural sound caught his attention. It was a scraping sound, like metal being dragged along the ground. At first he thought it was his parents returning from their night on the town, but no human or animal made that kind of sound. If it were his father digging in their small garden there would be some kind of rhythm or purpose to the scraping. This sounded more like a wounded animal. Concerned one of the cows had broken out of the pasture; Lucas peered out his bedroom window. A man was walking up the barren lawn to the front door of the house. Lucas could sense right away that something was not right with him. He was walking like he was injured and he was dragging something behind him, a section of barbed wire fence used to keep the cows from wandering off. To scared to speak, Lucas crept into his brother Phillip's room and shook him awake. Even though they were less than two years apart in age Lucas and Phillip were as different as any two people could be. Lucas was calm, patient and thoughtful. He believed any problem could be solved through rational thought. Phillip was the embodiment of manic energy. His first instinct in any problem was to take action as fast as possible. The dull fear Lucas felt throbbing inside him lessened a little when he saw his sleeping brother. Even if they didn't get along all the time, at least he wasn't alone anymore. "Phillip, wake up, there is someone in our front lawn" whispered Lucas trying to keep from panicking. . "Are mom and dad home yet" asked Phillip his voice still strained from sleep. "I don't think so," said Lucas, suddenly afraid whoever was lurking outside could hear him. "Our baby sitter is still here". Their mother had left them in the care of one of the ugliest women alive, a girl named April Denio. She looked like a baby hippopotamus stuffed into a dirty pair of sweatpants and a tank top several sizes to small, though Lucas and Phillip both doubted they even made tank tops in her size or if they even should. She looked like the embodiment of stereotypical trailer park trash, her hair in rollers and her face obscured behind a think coating of neon blue facial mud. Lucas did not look forward to having to ask her for help. Even though he had spent little time with the woman, he doubted she could hold herself together well in a crisis. Living so far from civilization and his karate classes had made Lucas far more self-reliant than most boys his age. He knew that he could defend himself if it came to that, but he hoped for a quick safe resolution nonetheless. Presently she was munching on a king size bag of pork rinds watching a bad TV movie starring her favorite boy band. "I wish I had a boyfriend," sobbed April dreamily through mouthfuls of fried pork fat, "I am nothing without a boyfriend." "Quickly" said Lucas trying to get the behemoth's attention. "There is an injured man in the front lawn, he needs our help". "What" said April excitedly, her attention complete from the word "man", "I hope he is cute, I hope he is single". "Listen" said April as she opened the front door and paced nervously loading the single handgun the family kept for defense. "It's probably just a stranded motorist, nothing to worry about. But if it's trouble I need you to call your parents or the police ok". Lucas didn't appear convinced but he felt calmer having some plan of action. April opened the door and called out to the approaching stranger who appeared to be dressed in a business suit, probably a lawyer. "Listen, this is private property, if you need help tell me" said April raising the handgun to the injured man standing in their doorway, "if not then please leave now, I will call the police". Neither the mention of the police or the gun pointed at the lawyer's face seemed to mean anything to him. In one swift motion, he lunged at April grabbing her by the arms and sunk his teeth into her neck. She didn't scream. She was dead before she hit the floor, eyes staring glassy in shock as the wounded man took a second, then third bite out of their stocky babysitter. Phillip sprung into action almost instinctively. He grabbed his baseball bat left on the floor and swung at the intruder with all his strength. The blow served only to get the man's attention; he looked up at Phillip with pure animal hunger in his eyes and began to crawl after him. Still lost in his rage he hit him in the head a second then third time and kept swinging until the lawyer lay twitching on the ground. Phillip collapsed to the ground breathing heavily, they both sat there in silence staring at the two bodies in their living room, no one sure what to do next. "I'll call the police," said Lucas the calmest of the two, he walked over to the phone slowly but steadily, trying to keep moving before the horror of what happened breached the protective layer of shock that deadened his senses. "The phone is dead" Said Lucas growing more worried, "we can't call the police, what we have to do is wait here for mom and dad to come home, they will know what to do". But before either could get settled down, a noise caught their attention. April was moving. Her eyes snapped open and she lifted herself to a crawling position like a drunk unsteady after a night of binge drinking. She began to crawl towards Lucas with an animal look of pure hunger in her eyes. "Run," shouted Phillip desperately trying to keep him mind focused of what to do next and not on the nightmare in front of him. He grabbed Phillips arm and practically dragged him out the front door and out into the night, as their babysitter's inhuman screams of hunger echoed after them. 


	4. City of the dead

Chapter 2: City of the dead  
  
Once outside, they did not stop running until they could no longer see the dim lights of their kitchen from the road. Neither one said anything as they pushed their way through the seeming endless blackness of country road. Even though they knew this area very well, somehow in one short hour the familiar landscape took on a sinister tone. As if any shadow could leap out and drag them into the pitch-black abyss never to be seen again. Suddenly the pair saw a strange light coming from over the small hill. What looked like twin miniature floodlights lit up a small area of road and what looked like an injured cow. Not taking any chances, Lucas and Phillip walked clear around the animal only stopping to peer into the source of the light, an overturned car. Inside were the crushed bodies of what looked like a family. It was eerie how peaceful they looked, like they were sleeping. Only trapped in an upside down car in the middle of nowhere. Without warning the woman in the passenger's seat turned and smacked her face into the shattered window struggling to free herself from her restraint and reach out to the two survivors. Within seconds the woman was joined by the two children in the backseat all screaming in a wordless plea that turned Lucas blood to ice. "Just run," shouted Lucas pulling Phillip along with him. As they began running a deafening screeching sound filled the air as several mosquitoes the size of large dogs began to chase after them. Like the cow and the motorists and even April, something was clearly unnatural about these animals. Pure instinct took over as Lucas rolled to the ground aiming at the nearest beast as he fell. The first shot hit the bug in the abdomen, the second tearing off half it's wings sending it crashing to the ground like a broken toy airplane. Using the last of his ammunition, Lucas brought the second then third mosquitoes down, the last one circling out in the darkness to come at him from another angle. "Get down" ordered Lucas to his panicking brother, "hide under the Car if you have to just get out of sight". With Philip out of the way Lucas felt calmer more in control. He waited not breathing watching the darkness for any sign of danger. As if the very night were holding its breath nothing moved. Without warning the buzzing erupted once more as the last mosquito dived at Lucas' back. Before the beast could reach him he turned behind kicking high, knocking the mosquito off it's course. The injured bug stuttered once, then twice then flew at Lucas one last time. Moments before the creature's bloody mouth pierced Lucas' clothes, he grabbed the pincer, broke it off and jammed it in the bug's eye sending it to the ground with the others. "It's all right, you can come out now" called Lucas into the night. After a few moments, Philip hesitantly emerged from his hiding place behind a large tree. "There gone right," asked Phillip nervously, "what's happening, none of this makes any sense". "Don't think about it now" replied Lucas, "Where almost in town, someone there has to know something, we just have to keep moving that's all, this place isn't safe, who knows what could be lurking out there". Without another word the two helpless children continued on into the uncaring night. After what felt like hours of running, Lucas and Phillip approached the last bend in the road before they reached Coatesville, the nearest town. The two children were so relieved to reach civilization and put the dogs and strange attackers behind them they didn't notice the city streets were completely empty. Nothing moved, no cars, no pedestrians, no one sitting on their porch or walking their dogs; even at this late hour there should have been something moving. At the very edge of the city stood a small diner, Lucas and Phillip had been there many times with their parents and sometimes on their own and knew Mary, the manager very well, an almost religious night owl who prided herself on being open at all hours of the night. If there was any chance of finding reliable help, she was the one. It wasn't until they reached the interior of the diner that the lack of activity began to worry them. The diner was a mess. Chairs were knocked over. Food was spilled on the floor, and a gasping choking sound was coming from the kitchen. "Wait here" said Lucas not wanting Phillip to come across any more bodies in one night. He alone quietly crept into the steaming kitchen to see Mary, the manager propped against the wall with a look of sheer exhaustion and terror on her face. "Oh god, not you too" moaned the woman in despair, her clothes torn and dirty. "What's wrong?" asked Lucas, "I'm here with my brother. I don't know what's going on. All I know is our farm was attacked and we came here for help" "Your not one of them" gasped the woman incredulously. "At any rate, you came to the wrong place for help the whole city's gone insane. It's all I could do to keep those monsters out of here. It's. it's like a war out there". The woman was obviously in shock and Lucas doubted he would get any clear answers out of her in this state. Before he could question her further he noticed the source of the blood on her clothes, an ugly bite mark on her arm. "Are you all right?" asked Lucas trying to get her to focus enough to talk. "I don't feel so good, ever since this morning," moaned the sick woman. Suddenly after a coughing fit she locked his gaze with a look so intense he had to take a step back. "Listen to me, this city is lost, do whatever it takes to get out of here, to survive, someone has to survive, no way this . disaster is natural, someone has to know." With that she passed out. Lucas didn't even bother to check her pulse. He knew she had passed away. "Where's Mary" asked Phillip sitting in one of the non-broken chairs absently buttoning and unbuttoning his coat. "She's gone" said Lucas in a low voice, "it doesn't look like were going to find any help here, were going to have to go at least as far as the next town before we find anyone, we could try to stop a motorist, something". "Ok" replied Phillip as he stared off into the dark empty city streets. "Listen" said Lucas recognizing the frighteningly unnatural mood his brother was in, "we'll make it out of here, we'll be fine, our parents probably aren't even here, they probably don't even know anything is wrong, I know your scared, I'm scared too, but what we need to do is to focus on getting out of this nightmare as quickly as possible, then there will be all the time in the world to be scared ok". Philip nodded in silent agreement, neither liked the idea of venturing into the pitch black town at two in the morning with god knows what crawling through the streets, but they figured it was best to get it over with as quickly as possible. Back on the street Lucas could immediately sense something was different. The same awful cry of hunger rose from within the diner; whatever was turning these people into monsters had infected Mary too. Mary's anguished cry was soon joined by a second, and a third and fourth until the entire city rang with the monstrous chorus of a thousand cannibalized beasts screaming for their blood. They came from everywhere, spilling out of cars, open doors and windows, some even falling off nearby roofs. Whatever was doing this to these people clearly wasn't discriminating. Among the mob were adults, old people with walkers, and children of all ages. The most disturbing sight being a mother in a business suit who dragged her unmoving child behind her on one of the security leashes used not to loose children at the mall. Before Lucas or Phillip could do anything, they were cornered in an alley, the mob of monsters seconds from swallowing them whole. The situation seemed hopeless, a single monster, an old woman hobbled into the alley, she glared at them with cloudy bloodshot eyes and screamed in rage as she fell on Lucas. Lucas shut his eyes tightly anticipating where she would bite him and how much it would hurt. But to his surprise the bite did not hurt at all, in fact it wasn't even a bite, the old woman didn't have any teeth, miraculously, he was still alive. Suddenly a gunshot rang out in the night and several of the gathering beasts drew back from the alley's opening in wordless terror. The source of the gunshots was a man perched on the roof of an adjoining building. "Whoever you are, listen to me, I'm here to help" said the man on the room, he didn't yell but he didn't need to, his normal voice held enough authority to reach them even at that great distance. "I'm going to try to clear a path for you to enter the building I'm in, whatever you do, don't panic and you'll be fine, remember, I'm here to help". Too grateful for words, Lucas and Phillip charged into the mob, making a mad dash for the doorway to the apartment complex their mysterious benefactor had holed up in. Several close escapes later, they stood before the gunman in the relative safety of the closed off apartment. The man who saved them looked like a biker, his hair slicked back, wearing nothing but severely weathered black leather, a single tattoo of a crown shown on his exposed biceps. "The name is John," said the leather jacket clad sniper, as Lucas and Phillip locked the door behind them, "John King, I was passing through this town when my car was attacked by some crazy people. I came here looking for help but it looks like this town needs help more than I do. It must have been some kind of chemical spill, are either of you injured". "Were fine," said Lucas grateful to see another human face, "but we can't find our parents, they were supposed to be in town tonight". "Don't worry about it," said John trying to sound concerned, but there was something fake about him, he seemed more like an actor in a play than a real person. "They probably drove to safety the moment they saw things weren't right in town. There probably at the police station in the next town, if they're not there the police can help you look". "A friend of the family's told us this city lost, and the only hope of finding help is to make it through to the other side". Said Lucas trying to be helpful. "This I is right" said John thoughtfully, I have a car, but I don't know the quickest way through, if we do this we have to do it fast otherwise were as good as dead before we even start". "We can take the main road straight through town" said Lucas trying to recall the times they went to visit relatives past the city. "Then it's settled, we leave once the streets are clear" said John clearly making himself the leader of the group, Lucas didn't mind, as long as they got out of this alive he was willing to take orders for the rest of the night. As they were waiting for the last of the mob to lose interest and give up, Phillip spotted a strange device in the corner of the room, it was a video camera of some sort. "What's this?" asked Phillip, knocking the strange device from side to side like a cat with a mouse. "It looks like a video camera," explained Lucas a little frustrated his brother had to pick now to go exploring when they were all in danger. He was about to turn away when a small inscription in the plastic device caught his attention. "Property of the Dupont Corporation" read Lucas aloud, why on earth would they have surveillance equipment in an apartment building?" Dupont probably just designed the camera" explained John agitated, as if the subject bothered him, Lucas didn't know why but the camera and the mysterious John's reaction to it made him very suspicious, but then again under the strain of everything he had witnessed tonight it was no wonder he was thinking paranoid, he just had to keep alert that's all. Phillip busied himself giving the camera a series of unpleasant hand gestures as Lucas made one last look at the device before returning to discuss the finer details of their escape plan. 


	5. Seeds of revenge

Chapter 3: Seeds of revenge  
  
Twenty miles away a lone scientist sat in the glow of more than one hundred computer monitors all showing different scenes of the destruction of Coatesville. The man smiled to himself absently adjusting the massive crucifix that hung from his neck, his eyes glowed like a child's on Christmas morning. The Scientist Anubis Lynch had much to celebrate. Even though he hadn't slept for three days, and his snow white hair was in knots and his eyes were glazed and bloodshot he was not the least bit tired. Today was the realization of all of his hopes and dreams since his wife had died of cancer years before. He had loved his wife dearly, and could find no meaning in her slow painful death, no understanding. When she had died, he buried himself in his work at the Dupont chemical plant hoping that if he could at least keep moving, the pain of the loss would not catch up to him. He floundered that way for a year and a half before something miraculous changed his life. On a whim he attended a Christian church service, The New Inquisition, and asked the priest afterward why his wife had to die so meaninglessly. The priest had told him that god does not make mistakes. His wife must have been a sinner to deserve such a fate. That all sickness was the lord Jesus Christ's was of making the godless sinners pay. He also told the scientist that the only means of saving himself was to join the fight against the sinners that even then spread their corruption among the innocent children. He left shaken but determined. He would find a way to fight the sinners. But he didn't know what a simple scientist could do. That is until the discovery of the T virus. Unbeknownst to the public, Dupont did more than pharmaceutical research. The creation and deployment of deadly bio weapons was only one of their more unethical practices. The t virus originally discovered by the umbrella corporation and stolen by Dupont spies during the fall of raccoon city was capable of infecting entire continents with plagues of the walking death. Anubis wept at the beauty of the virus when he saw the first carrier, some prison inmate that was unfortunate enough to be tested on by the company.  
  
He couldn't believe the other top scientists, all they could think about was money, selling the virus to terrorists or foreign governments. But of course they were the unenlightened, he was a born again Christian, a knight in the holy crusade against the sinners, and this beautiful virus would be the sword he would use to crush them once and for all. Suddenly an image on one of the monitors caught his attention. Impossible as it seemed, someone was alive in the wreckage of Coatesville, two small boys. At first he did not believe how anyone could have survived the disease. He was scared that somehow his carefully crafted plan could in fact unravel after all. But then he remembered god, and how he was a chosen warrior now. Nothing two helpless boys could do could stop him. He was untouchable. "It doesn't matter weather you have the virus or not" laughed Anubis, "your both going to die in there, and soon all the sinners of the world will taste the wrath of GOD!!" 


	6. Into the clutches of a killer

Chapter 4: Into the clutches of a killer  
  
With their plan complete, all that was left was to execute it. Making a mad dash across the street, John and Lucas climbed into the front seat with Phillip in the back seat. According to their plan, John would drive, Phillip would keep alert for any danger, and Lucas would deal with it. As soon as they got started, swarms of the plague victims began to surround the car in a tidal wave of reanimated flesh. Lucas's only means of clearing their path was a makeshift torch he swung at any of the monsters that got too close. Lucas knew their defense was nearly useless, but it made him feel better to be doing something other than just running away. Their biggest problem was not the few people clinging to the car. There was no way they could physically pull to car to a stop. The real threat came from the broken down cars that littered the streets. All it would take was hitting one wrecked vehicle and they would be unable to proceed and eaten alive for sure. There were several close calls, their car even knocked down a lamppost to avoid a three-car pile up on the main road, but everything considered, they got out untouched. It wasn't until they reached the city limits that the real trouble started. Panic and confusion exploded in Lucas' mind as John stopped the car for no understandable reason. The city limits were still in view and any moment the entire city could come following them, why was this lunatic stopping. "Is something wrong?" asked Lucas, "why did you stop the car?" "No, nothing is wrong at all," replied John amused, "everything is going perfectly to plan, what could possibly be wrong?" Lucas didn't like the sound of this one bit, a quick look into the back seat found Phillip asleep, resting his head against the window. He would be no help if anything serious went wrong. Lucas was beginning to suspect the strain of the night had finally made this stranger snap. "Were not going to the police" said John, "take a good look at me little boy, and tell me if you recognize me". After staring for a full minute, Lucas suddenly remembered where he had seen the man before, on the news, "oh my god, you're the Coatesville stalker" gasped Lucas desperately trying to formulate a plan of escape. "That's right, but don't worry," laughed John menacingly, "I'm not going to kill you. No, I need you alive" Lucas didn't say a word, how much worse could this situation get. First he had barely escaped the most gruesome outbreak imaginable, only to be kidnapped by one of the nations most notorious serial killers. This had to be a bad dream. "Allow me to explain" began John, "I'm sure you've heard of the Dupont chemical company". "They make plastics don't they, and drugs" replied Lucas unsure what this crazy man was getting at. "Yes," continued John, "but they do far more than that, they also design biological weapons, such as poisons and viruses. Including the one that was unleashed here tonight". "You mean this outbreak was deliberate" asked Lucas not believing a word of it, "that this company attacked my home for no reason, that makes no sense, and what do you have to do with this, I don't understand, what do you want from me". "You don't need to understand, consider me a bloodhound," answered John smiling at his analogy. "The Dupont Company has unleashed a virus in this city, my employers, the Umbrella Corporation want that virus. They sent me in to retrieve a sample, it's that simple". "Why don't you just take your sample and leave us alone?" shouted Lucas in frustration, "we have nothing to do with this". "Of course you do" smiled John, poking Lucas in the forehead as if he were a confused child, "the sample, is in you." Before Lucas could react, a high-pitched whine filled the air and an explosion knocked their car onto it's side, they were being attacked. "We have your car surrounded," boomed a voice from a loudspeaker, "This is a quarantined area, come out with your hands up or we will use deadly force". Moments later John, Lucas, and Phillip were standing outside of the car in front of what looked like a team of soldiers. However they wore space suit like protection gear instead of combat armor, their suits were white as snow except for the unmistakable emblem of the Dupont Corporation. "You people can't stop me," laughed John with pure arrogance, "the most powerful company in the world is waiting for me to deliver these samples to them, my every vital sign is being transmitted to them via global positioning software. If you so much as touch me, the entire Umbrella private army will be on you in less than an hour. So tell me, are you going to leave now or are you even stupider than you look". The soldier's only reply was a quick gunshot to John's head dropping him like a sack of anvils. Lucas and Phillip repulsed by the cold emotionless brutality turned away. The nearest soldier threw a small object between Lucas and Phillip. Within seconds, a foul smelling cloud of white gas blocked out their vision and moments later they were unconscious. 


	7. The madman is revealed

Chapter 5: The madman is revealed  
  
When Lucas came to, he was tied to a bed and handcuffed to Philip who had not yet awakened. He was in a bedroom of some sort. Everything was top quality. It was as if he were imprisoned in a mansion, this made no sense at all. Moments later Lucas realized he was not alone. A burnt out looking man stood in the shadows his face partially obscured, but it was clear he had been up for days without sleep and looked quite mad. "Where am I" asked Lucas, "my brother, is he alright". "Don't worry about your brother" said the man quietly. "I am Anubis Lynch of the Dupont Company, this is my home". "You are quite the resourceful boy aren't you? I was certain no one would make it out of that city alive. You have caused me quite a bit of trouble you know. I had to send my personal guard after you, you should be ashamed of yourself". "Were you the one watching us through the camera" asked Lucas frightened and confused. "Why didn't you do anything to help us if you could see what was going on?" "Help," asked Anubis stunned. "Why would I do a thing like that, that outbreak was my greatest accomplishment, why on earth would I help you"? "You, You did this, how, why?" asked Lucas not believing any human could be so evil they would willingly cause the destruction this man had caused. "Allow me to explain," said the mysterious man as if his motivations ought to be completely clear to all but the feeblest minded. "What you witnessed as your little friend from umbrella has probably already informed you was the work of the T virus, a mutagenic virus that turns the living into undead zombies". "This virus was originally discovered by Umbrella and tested for military uses, can you believe that, they want to make this virus into some army commander's plaything, you see, all they care about is money, lining their pockets with gold off the suffering of others, doesn't it make you sick". "I don't understand," said Lucas confused, "you unleashed the virus yourself, yet you condemn Umbrella for the very same thing". Dark clouds of anger settled over Anubis' features at Lucas' accusation. "I do regret having to destroy your little town, but it was how is it called collateral damage, you see I have a vision. Umbrella, and sadly to say my own employers were thieves and killers, I tried to enlighten them to my ideals, but they just couldn't see, so I had to eliminate them. But I am different, I am a humanitarian, a crusader, I seek nothing but god's divine will". "And god's will is this genocide, what are you going to do, infect the whole world?" asked Lucas dumbfounded. "Once more you don't understand" said Anubis impatiently, "God, himself has spoken to me, he was in pain, so much pain. I asked him what I could do to end his pain, and he told me the very presence of the sinners on his great earth ate away at him like cancer. And the only way to cleanse humanity was to exterminate the sinners". "This virus you see, is not the normal T virus, it is my own creation. The T virus is a very inefficient weapon, because it kills everything, everyone, beggars and kings all the same. My virus is smarter, more selective". "The virus itself was released in the air by weather balloons infecting every living thing in the state, but that was only the beginning. Lying dormant in your cells, the virus awaits its catalyst, the one thing that sets it off. This was dispersed in your city's water supply, the people drank the water and thus, well I'm sure you know what happened next better than I do". "What you witnessed here was only the beginning. Just as in the bible, god visited seven plagues upon Egypt. I will follow his lead and spread the virus to all corners of this world and deliver it an ultimatum. All citizens of the earth must embrace Jesus Christ as their one true savior or I will deliver them into the hell their godless souls demand. This way, if the people are trying to trick me by being believers in name only I will deliver them to the fires just as those heretics who resist from the start". "Your insane" said Lucas trying his best to break free of his restraints. "Insane" laughed Anubis, "I am a visionary, remember, they called Jesus insane to, and Joan of ark, all who follow the path of the righteous are doomed to bear the burden of humanities hatred, YOU MURDERED CHRIST for god's sake" screamed Anubis losing his composure but quickly regaining it. "You'll see, your brother is not merely sleeping, I have given him the second part of the virus. It is only a matter of time now, when your brother becomes one of those monsters, you'll witness the fate of the sinners, God demands the sinners blood, the blood of the sinners will water the earth like rain, the greatest Genocide this world has ever known will begin with you!!!!!!!" With his last explosion of anger, Anubis left Lucas alone with the unconscious Phillip. Lucas was desperate, this madman was going to destroy everything and he could do nothing to stop it, it seemed only divine intervention would free him.  
  
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the mansion, a deafening explosion shook the walls as eight armed and camouflaged soldiers burst into the mansion through the windows. Dressed in all black they looked more like ghosts than people. The only color on their uniforms being a large red and white emblem of an open umbrella on their backs. They moved with the efficiency and order of robots, they had their mission; they would accomplish it and leave nothing would stand in their way. "Do you have a read on the samples" barked the leader to one of the subordinates. "The samples are directly beneath us," reported the soldier, "This Anubis must have locked them in the labs somewhere". "We'd better hurry then," said the leader, "We need these boys alive, otherwise their useless to the company, there is no telling how long Anubis will want to play with his new toys before he loses interest and discards of them". "Don't worry said the subordinate trying to be reassuring, "I've read Anubis' file, I don't think he will kill them, at least not yet, he wants an audience, not a sacrifice. He wants someone to witness whatever it is he is planning, so he needs them alive maybe even more than we do". They continued on in silence from then on. They knew exactly where they were going. Months before, when Umbrella realized Dupont was trying to match their T virus research a mole was sent into the Dupont labs to work there and update umbrella on all advancements made in the lab. Their mole was charged with obtaining a sample of the new virus. But after this scientist Anubis overthrew and killed off his peers, the only option left to umbrella was to wait for Dupont to implement its test and try to pick up one of the survivors. They had sent John King in, an ex con who used to be known as the Coatesville stalker. The team leader felt this had been a mistake, but given the nature of their work, often the best and only options were society's more unstable citizens. This unfortunate rule applied to the scientists as well as the guards. Crazies like John and Anubis finding high-ranking positions in their respective companies was far more frequent then he liked to admit. He knew Umbrella was playing with fire. It was only a matter of time before they all got burned. But like the others he was paid to take orders, not to think. And his own past wasn't exactly clean either, so he had to make due.  
  
The trail led them deeper and deeper into the mansion. They did not expect to meet any resistance since the security, as well as the other scientists were long dead. Anubis, the only real threat left wouldn't dare take on an armed platoon by himself, that and the fact that he no longer needed the mansion. Now he had the data he needed from his tests, he would likely abandon the base with the virus. At last the commando team reached the Dupont labs, which bizarrely had been built right into the existing mansion and not under it as the umbrella labs were built. The leader kicked the door of the room containing the samples and found both boys, tied to each other. One was struggling to get free and the other deep asleep. Without saying a word, the leader broke the binds between the two boys and picked the struggling conscious one with him. "Shouldn't we take the second one" asked the subordinate. "Too risky" said the leader, "besides, he has been infected already, he is no use to us anymore". Almost in response to the leaders concern, Phillip's unconscious body began to convulse violently as if he were suffering from a terrible seizure. When his body stopped shaking, Phillips eyes were cold and glassy like marbles. A trickle of blood ran from his mouth as his body jerked one last time. Lucas shut his eyes tightly so he would not have to see his brother hurt. Lucas was too tired to resist. He let them carry him out of the bedroom. At least any place was better than this creepy mansion. If he planned to make an escape it would be better to wait until they were outside anyway. The commandos were talking among themselves. Barking orders, something about a secret in a bedroom. He was too drugged to make any sense of it so he concentrated on his plan of escape. Lucas didn't have long to contemplate his escape. Before his captors had even left the floor they picked him up from, a deafening roar of rage echoed from his former prison. Within moments the door burst inward off its hinges. Phillip stood in the doorway, now almost eight feet tall with muscles and veins bulging unnaturally from his body, which had changed almost beyond recognition. The soldiers panicked and began to fire at him blindly trying to drive the beast back. In the chaos of the firefight, Lucas was dropped and forgotten about. Without thinking, he grabbed the weapon of one of the downed soldiers ran as fast as he could away from the fighting getting lost deeper and deeper in the gigantic estate. Lucas realized that the area of the mansion he was in now was very different from the rest. The other wings were run down and decrepit, while this wing seemed to be meticulously if not obsessively clean. This must be where Anubis lives eats and sleeps, his most secrete hideaway. The thought chilled Lucas. He didn't want to know what secrets the madman kept where he thought no one would ever see them. He almost considered going back the way he had come when he realized he was not alone. Anubis was messing with some secret safe, the contents appeared to be samples of the very virus he unleashed on Coatesville. Lucas counted sixteen vials, more than enough to infect the entire world. "Stop right there" yelled Lucas as he aimed the injection gun at the fleeing Anubis. "I swear, I'll shoot you where you stand. I don't think you want to find out what this poison does to a normal healthy human. You are going to pay for what you did to my brother". "Go ahead, just try," said Anubis in a mocking tone. "You can't touch me, I have god's blessing and protection, you are nothing but a mere insect to me". To prove his point, Anubis walked directly up to Lucas and pushes the barrel of the injection gun to his heart. "Even if the likes of you could touch me, you wouldn't have the guts to do it. Go on, kill me if you're so sure of your moral superiority". Lucas couldn't move, he knew the madman was right. He wasn't a killer. He couldn't take someone down in cold blood even if he did just hurt his brother and countless other innocent people. "Pathetic" laughed Anubis as he took the gun away from Lucas. He had the gun now. He could just walk out unopposed and leave the facility through his personal escape rout leaving Lucas to be captured by the umbrella soldiers who even now must be making their way to his position. The urge to take this man down even if it was murder filled Lucas till he almost hurt physically. He felt he could do it in a heartbeat now and not feel a moment of guilt. But all of that was meaningless now that he no longer had the gun. "Just as I thought," laughed Anubis as he pocketed the gun and walked past Lucas with the remaining virus samples. "Remember this boy, what you have witnessed here is only the beginning. With this virus and god on my side, nothing can stop me now". Anubis' laugher was cut short as Phillip broke clean through the wall and roared in inhuman rage as he focused his gaze on Anubis. "Dear god" muttered Anubis almost speechless. "You've become a tyrant, a being of pure evil, but you still can't touch me. I have the protection of god". Anubis did not raise the gun at Phillip. Instead he held his crucifix in front of him as if it alone had the power to protect him from any harm. It didn't. Lucas watched in fascinated horror as Phillip reached out and grabbed Anubis and smashed him against the wall like a rag doll. His limp form fell to the ground, the injection gun lying uselessly on the floor. "Phillip, your alive" cried Lucas overjoyed. Even though he was changed, he was still alive there was still hope. Phillip turned on Lucas and screamed in animal rage. Only inches from the beast's eyes, Lucas knew immediately that this thing was not his brother. There was no trace of life or intelligence in those eyes, only mindless rage and hunger. Lucas dove at Anubis' lifeless body and pulled out the gun as the Phillip monster smashed a hole in the floor where he had been moments before. "I don't know who or what you are," said Lucas as he aimed the gun at the monster's pulsating heart. "But you are not my brother, and you are not stopping me". Lucas fired all six vials of anti BOW gas into the beast's heart as it gasped in surprise and fell to the ground. There was no emotion in the beast's last sound. Not pain, not sadness, only the meaningless escape of air from it's deflating body. For better or worse, it was all over, and Lucas was still alive. 


	8. The will to live

Final chapter: The will to live  
  
The silence after the horrific firefight was so complete it was deafening. It took a few minutes before Lucas could comprehend that it was over. He kicked Anubis' corpse aside and knelt by his brother's. After a brief attempt to pull his brother with him on the small hope he could be cured and revived, Lucas was forced to accept he could not carry his brother let alone save him. This was the end for him. Suddenly a shrieking sound filled the air as sirens and colored lights began flashing madly. "You fools" gasped Anubis still alive. "I am the master of this laboratory, when my heart stops, this base will self destruct. You cannot escape the lord's wrath sinner". "Haven't you done enough damage," said Lucas surprised by the anger in his voice. "You have taken everything from me, I've done nothing, no one I knew did anything, why do you insist we are sinners". "God damn you" muttered Anubis, his voice dripping with venom as he finally slipped into unconsciousness and then death. With his passing, an emotionless computerized female voice began to drone over the sirens. "The self-destruct sequence has been initiated, all employees report to the evacuation area". "What am I going to do?" asked Lucas in a panic hoping someone, anyone would answer. Before everything that had happened tonight, the ruination of his city, the death of his brother and his own hopeless fate, he thought he was brave. That he could take on anything and survive. But now he felt as if he were falling apart completely, the endless droning of the self-destruct mechanism blocking all attempt at coherent thought.  
  
"Calm down, think rationally" Lucas said to himself trying to force his heart to stop beating so fast. "There has to be a way out, there just has to be". He suddenly remembered what the soldiers who tried to kidnap him from the mansion were talking about. They were discussing Anubis' escape rout. He had some secret tunnel built into his wife's bedroom. All he had to do was find it and he would be safe. Lucas ran as fast as he could, out of the inner sanctum and through the twisting halls of the laboratory straining to remember the directions to Anubis' wife's bedroom in the mansion. He kicked the ornate doors to the bedroom nearly off their hinges as he burst into the room. For the first time he realized how sad the whole situation was. As much as he hated Anubis for what he did to his family and city, he could no longer fully hate the man himself. The bedroom was left exactly as she had left it the night she was hospitalized for terminal cancer. He no longer knew who to hate, Anubis and his insanity, the city and its ambivalence to the horrors going on in the mansion, the companies and their lust for money, no matter what the cost. Instead of the direct hatred he used to keep him going all night, he felt nothing but an overwhelming sense of emptiness. He shook his head to clear himself before succumbing to such a hopeless train of thought. He still had to hope, he still had to live. His parents were out there somewhere, along with all his friends from school. They were all waiting for him if he could just get out of this mansion. Lucas tore the oil canvas portrait of Anubis' wife from the wall and pulled the secret door open to reveal a long featureless corridor that no doubt lead to the private escape rout for Anubis himself. But something was wrong; at the end of the hall was not a door, but nothing, an empty stone wall, a dead end. Lucas collapsed, knowing that death was only a minute away. In what he thoughts were his last moments he contemplated what dying in an explosion must feel like. It wouldn't hurt, he was sure of that; the brain couldn't process the damage from a blast that big before it had completely destroyed the body, so he wasn't as afraid as he could have been. Suddenly another sound erupted over the sirens and the computerized voice, an inhuman scream of animal rage. Phillip was still alive. Within moments, the wall burst in and Phillip charged into the room, his brush with death only making him stronger. He had mutated once more, Lucas could no longer see his face or even his head, which apparently had sunken deep inside the cavernous body for protection, and Phillip had a new weapon, several tentacles swung madly from his back each ending in a dangerously sharp claw no doubt dripping with the virus. Without thinking Lucas dove between the creatures legs as he charged in his direction. The monster hit the wall with enough force to shatter it completely revealing an elevator shaft on the other side; no doubt the escape rout the computerized voice even now insisted all survivors reach. Putting all his energy in to one last desperate move, Lucas charged the monster, leapt into him sending both toppling over the edge onto the elevator platform below. The monster made a sickening cracking sound as it's back impaled itself on the exposed machinery of the elevator. Lucas rolled off the monster and could only watch in fascinated horror as the acidic blood of the beast corroded not only the machinery but the elevator floor as well. Within seconds the floor collapsed and Phillip fell into the darkness of the elevator shaft disappearing from sight. "Come on work" yelled Lucas in frustration at the ruined elevator. "There is now twenty seconds till the self destruct sequence commences," reminded the machine, "it is advised that all employees report to the nearest evacuation point". "No shit" said Lucas almost laughing at the irony of the situation. Aloud noise caught his attention, the blast door sealing the elevator shaft began to close shutting out the first rays of morning light from outside. The only way out was a small ladder that ran up the interior of the elevator shaft. "Your wrong Anubis" said Lucas more determined than ever, " I am not a mindless creature, I will survive, IT IS MY RIGHT!!!" With the last of his strength Lucas leapt the gap to the ladder and climbed faster then he believed he ever could. As he reached halfway the computerized voice began the countdown from fifteen seconds. "14, 13, 12, 10" Lucas reached the opening to the shaft and began to pull himself out as the computer counted down to zero. The blast doors shut underneath him and a deafening eruption flung him off the doors and unconscious onto the dirty ground below. 


	9. No forgivness

Epilogue: No forgiveness  
  
When Lucas came to, he was in a hospital bed. There were no windows to judge the time of day by, and the only person in the room was a girl a few years older than him sleeping in a chair in the corner of the room. He didn't know where he was, but it was clearly not a normal hospital. He did his best to sit up in bed finding his muscles tired and aching as if he had run for miles without stopping. "Where am I?" He asked groggily. The girl startled out of her sleep ran out of the room calling for someone named Jill. A few minutes later an older woman, probably about twenty walked in the room. She had short brown hair and wore a uniform that looked like a cop's only instead of a police badge a single word was embroidered in dark navy blue "STARS". "Your finally awake" said the woman named Jill, "you must have had a terrible ordeal. The name is Jill Valentine, S.T.A.R.S member." "What happened" was all Lucas could think to say. "Thank you Rebecca, you can go now," said Jill to the young woman who left quickly, "Listen to me very carefully, what happened in your city was an outbreak of disease known as the T-Virus. The people behind it are from a company known as Dupont. Dupont as well as other companies think they can play god and face no consequences because they have money. My friends and I, we belong to an organization that doesn't think that's right. Were a loose organization now, but were getting bigger everyday. We watch these companies, and every chance we get we try to stop tragedies like Raccoon city and Coatesville from happening. One day we hope to be able to get enough evidence and people behind us to actively fight back. That day will come soon. So don't worry about that. What you need to do is get better. We'll find a safe place for you to stay in the meantime, understand?" "I think so," said Lucas still dizzy. "Do you know if there is any way to find out if there are survivors from the city, my parents, they." "Were looking right away," said Jill. "It's pretty dangerous right now. Dupont sent in their clean up teams, they kill or capture any possible survivors. But there is a chance they got out ok. They might not even have been near the city when the outbreak happened. Whatever you do you can't give up hope, when that happens you give up completely". "I understand," said Lucas feeling suddenly very tired. "Thank you for saving me, but could I be alone right now, I have a lot to think about".  
  
"Alright" said Jill as she was leaving. "I'll be right near so if you need anything just call, your in a safe house right now so there is no way Umbrella or Dupont can find you, so just get some rest". Once Jill was gone and Lucas was alone for good, the full weight of what happened hit him completely. He was alone now, until if and when he found his parents he would have to figure out what to do with himself. He knew he couldn't just go back to school and pretend nothing happened. He was changed. He had seen the face of true evil and there was no way he could go back to ordinary life. He wondered then how many other people lost family and loved ones to these companies greed. He knew then what he would do. He was still a child now so he couldn't do much. But he had to help out somehow. Jill was right; someday somehow Umbrella, Dupont and all the people who valued money over human life would be brought to justice for their crimes. There would be no forgiveness for their atrocities. Lucas would be the one to make them pay, for his brother, his parents, for everyone. 


	10. Preview

Coatesville is in ruins, but the nightmare has only just begun  
  
Turn the page for an exclusive sneak peek at the next thrilling chapter of the Resident Evil saga.  
  
  
  
RESIDENT EVIL: THRONE OF THE HUNTER  
  
  
  
September 3003  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 1 Welcome to North Star  
  
Exactly one year and sixteen days have passed since the Coatesville disaster, and the city's single survivor was in danger once again. After three months of extensive field training Lucas was appointed a full member of S.T.A.R.S the agency that rescued him from the ruins of the Dupont mansion. The agency was skeptical at first about having a member so young. But over time they were swayed by his genuine dedication to bringing the companies to justice and assigned him his first undercover mission.  
  
The intelligence was vague, deep in the wilderness of Nevada; the Umbrella Corporation is building an exclusive planned community. This new town is constructed with technology at least twenty years ahead of its time. The entire city is liked to a super computer designed by Umbrella that orchestrates every aspect of its citizen's daily lives. Fully functional robots serve as both the police and servants to those fortunate enough to be granted access to the gated community. On the surface Umbrella's city appears nothing more than a simple real estate project, however, nothing concerning Umbrella is ever simple. On the eve of the opening of North Star Nevada, the city's founder, the eccentric billionaire Insert Name executed every single partner involved with the project leaving him sole operator of the city. All of this was intercepted from encrypted Umbrella radio transmissions, though curiously enough, Umbrella do not appear in the least bit concerned one of their top supporters has gone rouge. Instead the top Umbrella executives seem to only want to observe what becomes the city regardless what happens to it's innocent inhabitants.  
  
Fearing the beginnings of another outbreak or worse, S.T.A.R.S sent Lucas, Jill Valentine, and her old partner Chris Redfield into the city disguised as a family. Their job is to determine what Insert Name is planning and to stop him if necessary. Once arrived in the city, Lucas began to explore the rows of neatly manicured lawns for some sign of danger. The city looked to be ripped straight out of an advertisement for the fifties, every house looking nearly identical to the next, and there was not a speck of dust anywhere. The city looked more like a movie set or a dollhouse than anything else, though no matter how unsettling the sterility of the neighborhood was, Lucas did not find real reason to worry until he came face to face with the mysterious Insert Name himself.  
  
Insert was a very physically imposing man. He looked to be in his late fifties with perfect silver hair and the build of a marathon runner. He wore a finely tailored charcoal gray suit; his appearance very subdues except for a single ruby ring the size of a walnut on his left hand. He rested casually on the handle of an ornately carved ivory walking stick. He had the air of a king watching over his subjects. Lucas felt immediate respect and awe for the man, but he did not like him. Like Anubis, he to had a glint in his eyes that spoke of something far darker than simple ambition. Though with Anubis that glint was fear, with Insert, it was pure raw power. When Insert saw Lucas, He smiled at him, cold amused. As if he was just realizing the solution to a puzzle so complex, normal people couldn't even comprehend it.  
  
"Ahh you must be Sam Klein" said Insert, "the new family, I have been looking forward to finally meeting you in person, what do you think of my little town so far, it is adequate I hope".  
  
"It's very nice," replied Lucas still awkward with his false identity. He wasn't sure what to do or say. Part of him wanted to question the man to no end. Why did he eliminate all of his partners, what was he trying to accomplish here. But he had to be discreet. He was undercover after all, it was far safer to just let the man talk and learn what he could that way.  
  
"May I confide something in you?" asked the old man with a conspiratorial smile. "In my profession, one has to be a good judge of character, over the years I have perfected the ability to read people. I see something very special in you." "What do you mean?" asked Lucas unsure where the conversation was going. "This is what I believe," explained the man, "There exists a very special energy inside every living thing. A primal voice to defend oneself no matter what the cost, I call this the killer instinct. Normally this voice is smothered by mankind's hopelessly pampered lifestyle, I fear we are in danger of losing this voice all together. But there is hope, the hunt, when a man hunts, he allows even if only for a moment that voice to heard in all its glory. I look at you, and I see a fellow hunter, you know what it takes to survive." "You don't like modern society," asked Lucas confused, "then why build a city like this that takes care of your every need?" "Modern society has it's uses" said the man smiling at something Lucas did not understand, "But one must never allow their inner voice to die completely, everyone fears death, so they put their faith in technology, but what they don't realize is that they are killing their true selves. There is more than one kind of death you know. To become so helpless that you owe your entire life to a machine, is that what you call a meaningful life?" "I think I understand," said Lucas still a little confused. Despite himself, part of him agreed with this man. He was sure eccentric. But he didn't look dangerous. But then again, Lucas had also come face to face with a serial killer and never suspected a thing until it was to late. So he didn't know what to think of the strange aging man. "I'm sorry" apologized the man as he glanced at his watch, "I have kept you far to long, there is much that needs to be done, remember what I told you, if you ever have any free time, stop by the office, I would like to show you my trophy collection, I am sure you'll be most impressed". After the man left, Lucas continued his tour of the grounds trying to make some sense of the whole situation. His thoughts were interrupted when a large dog leapt from the adjoining lawn nearly knocking him to the ground. "Hey, you ok" came a disturbingly familiar voice, it was the dog's owner no doubt, "sorry about that, down boy, down". Lucas gasped as he got a good look the man who now wrestled with the dog it was his father. Moments later his mother joined his father and looked over at Lucas with complete embarrassment. "He never normally acts this way," said his mother with a shy smile, "by the way, I'm Tara Rogers, we just moved in here. You must be with the new family, the Klein's, tell your parents we'd like to invite them over for a welcoming party sometime". All throughout his mothers rambling Lucas was too shocked to say a word, she didn't even recognize him, something was terribly wrong here. The last most frightening surprise came moments later, his brother Phillip came running up the hill carrying a beat up soccer ball. "This is our son Phillip" said Tara with a wide smile, "He must be about your age, I'm sure you have a lot in common, anyway, we had better be going, we really hope you and your family feel welcome here, though we haven't lived here long, we know it's a wonderful town, Umbrella is truly a great company for creating such a paradise on earth". With that he watched dumbfounded as his family walked away from him. Too many questions to even be considered spun madly in Lucas' head. How could his parents be here, why didn't they recognize him, and how could Phillip be alive and human a full year after the disaster, none of this made any sense. One thing was clear, was that something was very wrong in North Star Nevada. 


End file.
